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WASHINGTON, July 20- The International Monetary Fund on Monday named as its new chief economist Maurice Obstfeld, an academic and White House economic adviser known for his work on money flows and international finance. Obstfeld, currently on leave from the University of California, Berkeley to serve on President Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisers,...

July 7- Only an excessively brave investor would bet that China's increasingly desperate moves to prop up its stock market won't work; only a fool would bet that they will. The proper place for anyone with any choice in the matter is on the sidelines, watching with concern as China, faced with a rapid implosion in its stock market, attempts to overawe would-be...

WASHINGTON/ NEW YORK, June 15- A U.S. judge on Monday awarded no damages to American International Group Inc shareholders led by former CEO Maurice "Hank" Greenberg in their lawsuit against the U.S. government, despite finding that the U.S. While Judge Thomas Wheeler of the Federal Court of Claims in Washington, D.C. sided with Greenberg on a key legal claim, the...

NEW YORK, June 12- The sharp bond market selloff is starting to pinch American consumers and companies, causing a mild economic tightening that, if sustained, could raise alarms at the Federal Reserve and even delay a plan to hike interest rates in coming months. And I do think that they will try to micro-manage the market, "said Craig Dismuke, chief economic...

*Global equity vs bonds 2012-' 15: http://link.reuters.com/fac39s. LONDON, June 10- The world of zero interest rates has outlived its usefulness, according to a chorus of influential bankers, watchdogs and economists anxious about asset bubbles and wealth inequality. "It's a mistake to keep interest rates this low for so long as it breeds complacency and leads to...

Former Fed Chair Bernanke said stock prices have risen rapidly over the past six years or so, but had been severely depressed; and current Fed Chair Yellen says equity valuations are generally quite high. The FMHR traders, weigh in.

*Gold recovers some ground after 1.7 pct slide on Tuesday. LONDON, May 27- Gold steadied on Wednesday off the previous session's two-week low as the dollar retreated after its biggest daily rise in two years, but prices remained under pressure from expectations that a U.S. rate increase may come soon. "Gold got hit by a double whammy yesterday, first of all from the...

*Gold recovers some ground after 1.7 pct slide on Tuesday. LONDON, May 27- Gold recovered some lost ground on Wednesday as the dollar retreated after its biggest daily rise in two years, but prices remained under pressure from expectations that a U.S. rate increase may come soon. Gold fell 1.7 percent on Tuesday, its biggest one-day drop this month, after firmer data...

*Former Fed chief Bernanke says China slowdown necessary. SEOUL, May 27- Former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that China's economic slowdown should not worry markets as there was no risk of a hard landing, and emphasised that a move to raise U.S. rates should be viewed as a positive sign for the world's largest economy. Bernanke, who participated in an...

Treasury Secretary Jack Lew will participate in a moderated conversation at the London School of Economics and Political Science- 0945 GMT. LONDON- Bank of England's Sarah Breeden: CSFI Roundtable on Bank of England's Procyclicality Working Group SEOUL- Former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke to attend a financial forum hosted by Dong-A Ilbo and...

SEOUL, May 27- Former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Wednesday there were no signs of extreme movements in the U.S. real estate and financial markets, but criticised the U.S. Congress for failing to approve the IMF reform measures. Bernanke also said during an open interview at a private-sector forum in Seoul that if the Fed lifts interest rates, it...